If financial hardship within Scottish football was supposed to hasten a wider gulf than ever between the Old Firm and the rest, somebody forgot to tell Hibernian. In this, the first season since the demise of Setanta, it had been widely and not unreasonably assumed that tighter budgetary constraints than ever outside of the country's big two would ensure Rangers and Celtic pulled clear of the pack at a formative stage of the season. What in reality has emerged is a Premier League table that is, in relative terms, positively cluttered in the top five positions; if Hibernian glean victory from the Edinburgh derby on Saturday lunchtime, they will go level on points at the top of the league.

Whether or not the Old Firm have regressed to such an extent that people dare to utter the word "competitive" or teams such as Hibs, Motherwell and Dundee United have radically improved will play out in the fullness of time. It would still be optimistic, one has to admit, to suggest Scotland's third force will be within 20 points of the second-placed team come May.

Hibs' re-emergence, though, is genuinely welcome amid a period in which Scottish football has been kicked almost as hard as the blow inflicted by Celtic's Stephen McManus on the Hearts winger Andrew Driver nine days ago. Appreciation is especially felt by fans of Edinburgh's green half, who have become a disgruntled lot in the last few years, tired by the regular departure of their most promising players without significant monies being reinvested in replacements, added to the frequent sight of Hearts as the Old Firm's most meaningful opposition.

The obscure thing regarding the rise to prominence of Hibs is that, even by the admission of their own supporters, they have regularly failed to hit the performance heights which their team list suggests they can do. This season has already included a fortunate victory at bottom-placed Falkirk, a Co-operative Insurance Cup home loss to St Johnstone, an utterly abject showing in defeat at struggling Hamilton and, last week, only two late goals to secure a win over nine-man Aberdeen.

Those who point to such instances as evidence of Hibs' good fortune or impending decline should bear in mind that it had, in recent seasons, become a standing joke among followers of other clubs – particularly Hearts, of course – that the free-flowing, Brazil-esque football at Easter Road arrived for next to no reward. In a straw poll, there is no question which qualities the Hibs support would rather have; this season's breaks here and there have at last resulted in an early-season challenge from the east coast.

It would, moreover, be disingenuous to claim the success of John Hughes in his opening months as manager is completely down to fate or brute force. Hibs played their part in the most enthralling clash of the season this far, the 1-1 draw at Ibrox just under a fortnight ago, and have already briskly swatted aside the challenge of high-flying Motherwell at Fir Park.

It should also be noted by Hibs' detractors that, in Derek Riordan and Anthony Stokes, the club has top-class strikers who are yet to find anything like their optimum form. Liam Miller may be the manager's most clever signing. The former Celtic boy-wonder, who once caused ructions in one half of Glasgow for having the audacity to leave for Manchester United, has seen his career steadily wilt ever since. Not only has Miller the guile to unlock SPL defences while carrying a scoring threat himself, he has a point to prove.

Hughes has a thin squad and, as his biggest weakness, at times an overgenerous defence, but the confidence built up by this Hibs run should not be underestimated. Sol Bamba represents one player who has impressed beyond what many thought to be his station as a centre-half; that said, the former Dunfermline man's assertions that Liverpool were keeping a close watching brief on him did hint at a little overexuberance.

Such matters only add intrigue to Scotland's capital derby. Hearts may be the hosts but bookmakers are being generous by rendering Csaba Laszlo's side favourites for this encounter. Lying eighth in the league and frequently displaying about as much punch as a glass of Kaliber shandy, these are worrying times for the Tynecastle men. For inspiration, they need look back to a 22-match unbeaten run against their neighbours from the late 80s and early 90s, a spell in which Hibs were often the on-form Edinburgh side before a derby ball was kicked.

Laszlo, finally, is attracting attention on the basis that his tactical nous appears to extend to just one formation. The manager's regular public gripes regarding a lack of experience within his squad is also likely to wear thin with a certain Mr Romanov of Lithuania; the blunt truth for Laszlo is that Hearts are guilty of shocking underperformance given the players at their disposal. That, it goes without saying, is a coaching issue.

As if the Hearts support were not agitated enough by that and Hibs' striking progress, salt has been rubbed into an open wound by the fact that two of their rivals' key performers – Stokes and Miller – could easily have been lining up in maroon this weekend. Both players were offered to Hearts in the close season; Miller in particular is understood to have agreed in principle to the prospect after conversation with his former United team-mate and the current Hearts captain, Michael Stewart.

This represents the latest test of Hibs' ability to handle the heat. In the last three seasons, Edinburgh derbies have routinely gone against the form book; none more so than the final one of the last campaign when struggling Hibs won at Tynecastle courtesy of a late Riordan penalty. If the men in green can repeat such a feat tomorrow, even the Old Firm may be forced to sit up and take notice.